Adding a little sparkle to ordinary life.
Mrs Robbins Sparkles is a lifestyle blog for the kinda crunchy DIYer who wants to add a little sparkle to life.
If you subscribe to Mrs Robbins Sparkles you might have received a half-finished blog post in your email today. Sorry friends! It wasn't supposed to post, total fail on my part. It's been a busy couple weeks! I'll be back on Monday with all new (and completed!) posts.
Have a very Happy Thanksgiving, y'all!
Snow arrived early this year!
Yes, yesterday we actually got a couple of inches of snow here at the house. Of course, James was up at his deer lease and had a lot more, but I was happy to get what we did. Winchester was happy too.
He had a blast playing in the snow! He didn't know what to make of it at first, but he really got into it after awhile. Coco enjoyed it too, from her cozy spot on the couch.
As for me, I spent most of the day in front of the fire, watching a Harry Potter marathon. I was devastated when the fifth movie refused to play on the DVD player, but at that point James had finally made it home so we decided to clear out some of the DVR recordings.
It was a pretty fabulous snow day, but I'm afraid we are going to have to get some more firewood. I went through a ton this weekend! I absolutely adore a real wood burning fireplace, don't you?
It's time again for Twitterature! I'm linking up over at Mrs Modern Darcy and talking about all the books I read this month. I read WAY more books than normal since the last Twitterature, so get ready for quite a list.
The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Nighttime – This was an intriguing book. It is told from the perspective of a pre-teen boy with autism, which gives the book a very different feel than most novels. I appreciated the perspective, but I didn’t care for the book overall. It made me feel kind of depressed, actually. Somehow more so than a book like Sharp Objects (which is about murders of teenage girls!). But it is worth a read just to experience the narrator. $7.99 for Kindle
The Wife – I just finished it this week. I didn’t love it. The author, Meg Wolitzer, also wrote the Interestings that I couldn’t make it through. The Wife was more interesting (pun intended) but wasn’t a book I felt compelled to finish. I purchased it on sale on my Kindle, and it’s a book I read on lunch breaks or when I had bits of time here and there. I could put it down for days before remembering that I was reading it. I know some people love this author, but I think she just isn’t quite my cup of tea. $10.93 for Kindle.
Sharp Objects – This is Gillian Flynn’s (author of Gone Girl) debut novel. It is dark and creepy, maybe a little more so than her other two novels. If you like Flynn’s style, definitely read this one. But I think Gone Girl is the best of the three. $6.99 for Kindle
Z: A Novel of Zelda Fitzgerald - I’ve long been captivated by the Golden Age writers like Hemingway and Fitzgerald, and this book seemed like a great way to learn about their stories from Zelda’s point of view. Of course, this novel is fiction so it isn’t exactly historical. In fact, parts are pure speculation. But I loved getting to see things from Zelda’s perspective. Read this if you liked Midnight in Paris, I think you’d enjoy it! $8.89 for Kindle
The Kingmaker’s Daughter – This book is about Queen Anne, the wife of Richard III. She was the daughter of Richard Neville, who was instrumental in bringing the York family to the throne and who was furious when King Edward married Elizabeth Woodville instead of who he had chosen. You almost need to read all the other books in this series, or be very familiar with this period in British history, to appreciate this book. It is quite interesting to read all the different perspectives on the same events. I’ve listened to podcasts on many of the people in these books, but I’ve loved getting to read about them, even if it is just historical fiction. $10.16 for Kindle
The White Princess – This book is one of the last books in the Cousins War series by Philippa Gregory. It is about Elizabeth of York, who marries Henry Tudor, making her Queen of England. Her mother was featured in the White Queen (Elizabeth Woodville). Again, this book is probably only going to interest you if you’ve read the others in the series. $9.99 for Kindle
The Goldfinch – I listened to this one on Audible. It was long and a little tedious in parts. It took over 32 hours to listen to. I mostly listened on my commutes, and there were some parts I feel like if I’d been reading on paper I would’ve skimmed over because it seemed to drag on in sections. But things picked up, and the last 10 hours or so seemed to fly by. This one is probably better read than listened to, but I do recommend it! $6.99 for Kindle
My Life in France – Oh, Julia Child. I loved reading this book and learning more about her. But I must confess, when I picture Julia and Paul Child, I actually picture Meryl Streep and Stanley Tucci. Blame Julie Powell and Nora Ephron for that. But this book was wonderful and made me long to visit Paris once more. Fresh pain au chocolat from a little patisserie is heaven. $9.99 for Kindle
Dark Places – This is the second Gillian Flynn novel I read. Like both of the others, it was dark and creepy and I enjoyed it. This one is probably my second favorite of hers (so it goes Gone Girl, Dark Places, then Sharp Objects). Like Sharp Objects, it is about murder. Specifically, it is the unraveling of the murder of a family. Two children survived. One is in prison for the murder, the other, after years of denial, finally decides to figure out if her brother really did it. I can usually guess the ending in these types of books, but I have to say this one surprised me. $7.98 for Kindle
The Expats – I read this one because the Hollywood Housewife recommended it ages ago on her blog. It’s a thriller, but it isn’t dark and creepy like Flynn’s novels. Expats is more about secrets and marriage and the CIA. I really enjoyed this book, though I wouldn’t call it unputdownable. Definitely a worthwhile read though. $8.99 for Kindle
Yes, Please – Oh, I adored this book. Amy Poehler, yes please! I listened to the audio version of this book, and you MUST do that. Amy herself narrates, except when Seth Myers read his chapter, or when Amy’s parents drop in, or when Kathleen Turner or Patrick Stewart take over for a bit. It’s a quick listen, less than 8 hours. But I was laughing out loud for many parts, while also really enjoying the more serious aspects. Amy talks a huge mistake she made, and she owns up to it eventually. It made me like her even more. After listening to this audiobook, I think I will only do audio for these kinds of memoirs in the future. $12.99 for Kindle, but try the Audiobook for $17.14
Gone With the Wind - I have very conflicting feelings about this book, and I plan on doing a whole post about it. It used to be my favorite book, but I hadn't read it in years. I listened to it on Audible and noticed things I'd either missed in my first dozen readings, or perhaps purposely ignored. Either way, I'm glad I listened to it! $7.99 for Kindle
Whew, that's it! Hope you made it all the way through with me. Have you read any of these? And do you listen to audiobooks? I only started to recently, and I'm loving them!
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